BOSTON – He was a prolific producer of points, rebounds and
record albums. And nicknames, too, as if at 7-foot-1 and 350 pounds
he was too big for the simple “Shaq” that made him an instantly
recognizable, one-name star in all of his endeavors.

Shaquille O’Neal had more than 28,000 points and almost 4
million Twitter followers. He appeared in six NBA Finals, three
times as the MVP, and seven feature films, twice in a starring
role.

A 15-time All-Star, four-time champion (three with the Lakers)
and the 2000 NBA Most Valuable Player, O’Neal, 39, announced his
retirement on Twitter on Wednesday after spending most of his 19th
season on the Boston Celtics bench, in street clothes because of
leg injuries.

Along with a mid-afternoon tweet saying, “im retiring,” O’Neal
included a link to a 16-second video of him saying, “We did it; 19
years, baby. Thank you very much. That’s why I’m telling you first:
I’m about to retire. Love you. Talk to you soon.”

An inveterate prankster who gave himself a new nickname — or
several — in each of his six NBA cities, O’Neal did not notify his
latest team, leaving it wondering about his plans. He played just
37 games this season, the first of a two-year deal at the veteran’s
minimum salary, making three brief appearances after Feb. 1.

“He’s a giant,” commissioner David Stern said Wednesday at the
NBA Finals in Miami. “He’s physically imposing; he has an imposing
smile. In the game, he imposed his will, and he has done it for
quite a long time. It’s been a great run here, and we’re going to
miss him greatly. We hope we can find ways to keep him involved in
the game.”

O’Neal, 39, retires fifth all-time with 28,596 points, 12th with
13,099 rebounds, and a .582 field goal percentage that is second
only to Artis Gilmore among players with more than 2,000 baskets.
His free throw percentage of .527 — well, now is not the time to
dwell on that.

“I’m a little bit sad,” said Heat president Pat Riley, who
coached O’Neal when he won a title in Miami. “He will go down as
one of the greatest of all time.”

Appropriately, O’Neal’s retirement became the No. 1 trending
topic on the social networking site he embraced by early
evening.

“Shaq not only dominated the game of basketball but also
dominated off the court w/ his big personality. Hes 1 of the
greatest entertainers,” Magic Johnson said. “Thank you Shaq for
leading the Lakers to 3 titles. We loved every minute of it!”

O’Neal spent three years at LSU and was the big prize when the
Orlando Magic won the 1992 draft lottery and selected him first
overall. He took it to the NBA Finals by his third season, where it
was swept by Houston.

When he became a free agent, O’Neal signed with the Lakers in
1996 and had his greatest success there, winning three titles
alongside Kobe Bryant and Coach Phil Jackson. But amid tension
between O’Neal and Bryant after a loss to the Detroit Pistons in
the Finals, O’Neal was traded to the Heat in the summer of
2004.

“I often wonder how many they would’ve won if he stayed,” said
Johnson, the Lakers’ Hall of Famer.

After 3 ½ years in Miami, a tenure that included his
fourth NBA championship, O’Neal became a veteran for hire, moving
to Phoenix and then Cleveland and finally Boston.

At each stop, he endeared himself to the fans and his new
teammates with his effervescent smile and playful attitude,
including the habit of adopting a new nickname he felt embodied his
role with his new team. In Phoenix he was the “Big Shaqtus” and in
Boston the “Big Shamroq.”

“What a career for Shaq Diesel!!” LeBron James wrote on Twitter.
“The most dominating force to ever play the game. Great person to
be around as well. Comedy all the time!!”

O’Neal embraced social networking, amassing more than 3.8
million followers on his Twitter account and keeping them informed
on his “random acts of Shaqness” — like sitting in Harvard Square,
pretending to be a statue, or going out in drag on Halloween.

But O’Neal’s off-court persona couldn’t disguise the fact he was
getting old and his body was breaking down. He averaged just 9.2
points in his final season and played only three games — 34
minutes — after Feb. 1.

“I’m glad that he retired. I think it was time,” former NBA
guard Tim Hardaway said. “He was hurting his legacy.”

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